Alpinist 22, Winter 2007-2008

Mountain Profile: Ben NevisLong approaches, short climbs, rain, spindrift, runouts: maybe the cows aren't the only things mad in Britain. Simon Richardson delves into a century of delightful insanity on the Ben, while Robin Shaw, Ken Crocket, Chris Cartwright, Victor Saunders and Ian Parnell explicate the perverse pleasure of full conditions on Scotland's highest peak. by Simon RichardsonFEATURES

Batso at RestWarren Harding enjoys his final climb. by Dick Dorworth

DreamfallInes Papert had always dreamed of the perfect ice climb--until a trip to Iceland with Audrey Gariepy taught her she'd have to create it herself. by Ines Papert

Gods of the ElementsVenezuela's tepuis offer a strange cocktail of vertical rainforest, bullet-proof sandstone, lethal reptiles and some of the trickiest approaches around: is this the sort of climbing only a local could love? by Ivan Calderon

Life on TopSummits can be elusive enough; for some of us, the reasons we're drawn to them may seem even more mysterious. Only one thing's for certain: we can't stay on top forever. by Alan Kearney

Lightning Strikes LastWhat do you do when your passion for climbing keeps getting you hurt? Stephan Siegrist simply persevered until seven years of bad fortune led to unexpected good luck. by Stephan Siegrist

SHARP END

BootyThe Editors

Short PitchesCragging News.

Editor's NoteThe Affabulateurs. by Christian Beckwith

NamesakeHow The Full Potential got its name. by Barry Blanchard

Tool UsersBradford Washburn's first real camera. The Editors

WIRED

Escape RouteSquamish's Freeway is as clean as a white T-shirt in a Tide commercial and boasts a dozen pitches of first- and second-knuckle-swallowing joy. For this Canadian climber, it is, hands down, the best route in the world. by Sonnie Trotter

First AscentThe great Fritz Wiessner himself told Jim McCarthy not to do it. So what did the young climber do? What any budding vulgarian would: he ignored the advice, climbed Wiessner's Crack--and then put up his own route on the untouched west face of Devils Tower. by Alex McAfee and Jim McCarthy

Full ValueA fractured femur, a dislocated hip, a head injury, eight days of constant avalanches, getting dragged out of the Ruth Gorge in a sleeping bag: it's enough to give anyone pause. by Jim Sweeney

Off BelayA journey into the heart of Alpine winter. by Nick Bullock

LOCAL HEROESRolando Garibotti celebrates one of America's great unsung heroes: Bruce Miller. With photographs by Ted Wood.by Rolando Garibotti